Lucas Digne's sboasia departure to Everton has left Barcelona short of senior cover at left-back, so Ernesto Valverde will look to La Masia for a solution ahead of the 2018/19 campaign.Juan Miranda has been on the fringes of the first team of late, but he will now be promoted and entrusted with the role of being Jordi Alba's deputy. This decision was communicated to the defender during Tuesday morning's training session, where he worked with the senior players throughout.Alba enjoyed his most productive season at the Camp Nou under Valverde's stewardship in 2017/18, yet the Spaniard needs to be pushed in order to maintain his high standards.Digne had wanted to leave for a while, and the offer from the Merseyside club was too good for Los Cules to pass up, especially at a time when balancing the books is of vital importance.One of the criticisms of the Josep Maria Bartomeu administration has been the decline of La Masia, with fewer players than ever before sboasia progressing into the first team.Sergi Roberto is probably the last to have come through the system, and he's been a squad ever-present for a number of seasons. There were two serious contenders for the role in Miranda and Marc Cucurella, with the latter possibly going out on loan now.Whilst the former Athletic Club coach had his reservations about trusting a young player, Eric Abidal made it clear that finances wouldn't be made available for a signing in that position. As such, the 18-year-old has been given the opportunity of a lifetime, one which will run until January at least.His tender age presents even more of a risk, despite his positive performances in pre-season, and it must be remembered that Miranda had only played a handful of matches with Barcelona B in 2017/18.The step up is significant, and it will be a true test for the defender, however, promoting from within is the lifeblood of Barcelona, sboasia certainly in the eyes of supporters, and Miranda's chance is a perfect example of that.